How Aomori Is Turning Snow Into Electricity

The environmental innovation was developed by Koji Enoki, an associate professor at the Tokyo University of Electro-Communications. Enoki says generating electricity from snow can be as effective as harnessing solar power.

Currently, the sun and wind are the two natural sources most commonly used to obtain clean energy. Soon, another one will join them — snow.

For the city of Aomori in the north of Honshu Island, snow is a special and undervalued resource. There is a lot of it here: Aomori is considered one of the snowiest cities on the planet. And something needs to be done about it. Until recently, tons of snow were dumped into the ocean. Now it has a chance to become a valuable source of renewable energy, Nikkei Asia reported.

The city authorities, the startup Forte, and the Tokyo University of Electro-Communications are testing a new technology in an abandoned school swimming pool.

How does it work?

As researchers explained, electricity can be generated by utilizing the temperature difference between snow and the outside air. Snow collected from the streets will be dumped into a pool. Heat-transfer pipes will be placed in the snow. At the same time, the installation will collect air heated by the sun. That temperature difference will create a convection flow in the refrigerant inside the system. The convection flow will spin a turbine and generate electricity.

The team expects to harness energy from snow at low cost. They are also exploring systems that would supply snow energy to businesses and households.

Researchers are also considering using heat from hot springs to create even greater temperature differences during snow-energy production. In northeastern Japan, which receives heavy snowfall, several resorts have hot springs.

The greater the temperature difference, the higher the production efficiency, Enoki said.

He also noted that snow energy has a smaller environmental impact than other forms of renewable energy. Solar and wind installations eventually require disposal. In contrast, melted snow can be handled like regular wastewater.

If the technology proves its advantages, it could be adopted in other parts of the world. In particular, Europe’s snowy regions could find it useful as they look for more clean-energy options.